Livingston conference aims to empower young women

They will come from all over the region.

They will get resources and training on how to pursue their dreams.

They will learn about self-image, social media pressure, finances and even self-defense.

And when they are done, organizers of Livingston’s sixth annual Young Women’s Conference hope the teenage girls who attend “feel special” and empowered as they face the future.

The conference will take place from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. March 28 at Livingston Middle School, but the last day to register is Friday.

Martha Nateras, a guidance assistant at Livingston High School and founder of the Young Women’s Conference, said the event is targeted to seventh- through 12th-grade girls from Merced and neighboring cities.

This year’s keynote speaker will be AnnMaria DeMars, president of The Julia Group, a company that provides online education in statistics, mathematics and disability issues. DeMars is also a World Judo champion and the mother of Ronda Rousey, a mixed martial artist and actress.

The other two guest speakers are Leslie McGowan, chief executive officer at Livingston Community Health, and Sol Rivas, assistant Head Start director at the Merced County Office of Education.

The event will include 14 workshops to discuss college, careers and life skills. Topics include self-image, peer and social media pressure, finances, self-defense and scholarship opportunities.

Some of the most popular workshops in the past have been those that discuss life after high school and how participants can secure their first jobs. Presentations from a man’s perspective also tend to be popular, Nateras said.

Nateras, a former Livingston City Council member, said the idea of the conference came during a dinner discussion with her daughters and son-in-law, who are also educators. She said they talked about the obstacles that today’s young women face on a daily basis.

“Especially with all this social media, I think young women have it even harder these days,” Nateras said. The conference was formed to simulate the Mujeres Latinas conference in Stanislaus County, which no longer exists. “But what’s unique about this event is that it welcomes all girls,” she said.

As it branched out, the conference grew in size. Nateras estimates that about 300 girls participate in the event each year, and they come from surrounding communities such as Modesto, Newman and Patterson.

“This is a day for girls to feel special,” Nateras said. “We want to empower them with tools to take their future in their hands.”

Twenty-three informational groups will be present. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.

To register for the event, go to www.muhsd.org.

This story was originally published March 19, 2015 at 5:57 PM with the headline "Livingston conference aims to empower young women."